President Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy struggled to present a cohesive strategy for the war-torn country to fend off Russian invaders even as they renewed their plea with Congress for tens of billions of dollars more in aid.
The leaders huddled at the White House after Mr. Zelenskyy met senators and House Speaker Mike Johnson on Capitol Hill in a last-ditch effort to get the aid approved before Congress’ Christmas break.
Despite the full-court press from Mr. Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart, the two appeared stumped when asked at a joint press conference to articulate an endgame for the war, which has raged since February 2022.
“We want to see Ukraine win the war, and as I’ve said before, winning means Ukraine is a sovereign, independent nation that can afford to defend itself and deter further aggression. That is our objective,” Mr. Biden said, offering little insight on how to achieve that goal.
Mr. Zelenskyy, meanwhile, insisted there is a “clear” plan, but said it would be foolish to speak about it publicly. He sternly rejected the suggestion of ceding some territory to Russia as a potential peace plan.
“That’s insane, to be honest,” Mr. Zelenskyy said through a translator. “We have our people there. We have our families there. We have our children there. That’s a part of Ukrainian society and we are talking about human beings.
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“It’s not a matter of territory — it’s a matter of life, of families, of children, of their histories,” he said.
Mr. Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington did little to break the deadlock in Congress over Mr. Biden’s request for $60 billion in new aid for Ukraine’s war effort.
Mr. Biden sought to shame Senate Republicans into supporting his supplemental aid package. He noted that a Russian news outlet hailed their refusal to support his push for additional Ukraine funding and argued that their demands are playing into Russian President Vladimir Putin’s hands.
“Congress needs to pass supplemental funding for Ukraine before they break for the holiday recess before they give Putin the greatest Christmas gift they could possibly give him,” he said.
He also warned that Russia intended to bomb Ukraine’s electrical grid in the coming months, saying it could devastate the country. He said the planned attack is proof Congress needs to act without delay.
The Ukraine aid is part of a $110 billion package that includes money for Israel and Taiwan and money to process migrants crossing into the U.S. Republicans have demanded significant changes to Mr. Biden’s border policies to clear the way for the aid package.
SEE ALSO: Zelenskyy vows transparency of U.S. aid and to root out corruption, in plea to Congress
Mr. Zelenskyy made his case to lawmakers twice in the last three months, but he’s finding Republicans increasingly skeptical of his warnings that Ukraine is running out of weapons.
His cries for help come at a grim time as the war has hit a stalemate; some Ukrainians are questioning Mr. Zelenskyy’s leadership.
While Mr. Zelenskyy was in Washington, Kyiv fell victim to a cyberattack that crushed cellphones and banks.
Senate Republicans voiced support for Mr. Zelenskyy’s cause but insisted the Biden administration overhaul border policies to stop the record flow of migrants.
Sensing the lukewarm reception, Mr. Zelenskyy vowed to increase transparency and root out corruption during his meeting with lawmakers.
“[Zelenskyy] made it very clear, he said there would be no acceptance of any corruption whatsoever on the deployment of any American resources whatsoever within his country,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, South Dakota Republican. “If we see corruption here, we go after the people that are causing the corruption. He is doing the same thing there.”
The pledge from Mr. Zelenskyy sought to quell longstanding concerns, particularly among House Republicans, about where the U.S. aid is going.
The U.S. has given Ukraine $111 billion to fight Russia. The White House Office of Management and Budget gave this accounting for the spending:
• $67 billion to buy weapons and supplies from the U.S.;
• $27 billion for non-military and non-humanitarian aid such as economic and civilian security assistance;
• $10 billion for humanitarian relief; and
• $7 billion for other uses.
The European Union has provided roughly $90 billion.
The chances of Ukraine receiving a significant boost of U.S. aid before the end of the year are now slim to none. Senate negotiations for a border deal to free up the aid package have stalled and lawmakers plan to depart Washington by Friday for a two-week vacation.
Still, Mr. Biden insisted there is strong bipartisan support for Ukraine among lawmakers.
“A small number of Republicans who don’t want to support Ukraine, but they don’t speak for the majority of even Republicans, in my view,” Mr. Biden said. “We’re in negotiations to get the funding we need, not to promise — not making promises, but hopeful we can get there, and I think we can.”
Senate Republicans and Democrats, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and White House staffers met for roughly two hours Tuesday afternoon on Capitol Hill about the southern border.
Earlier Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said the Senate hadn’t given up on passing Ukrainian aid before the end of the year.
“We’re still trying. We are trying very, very hard to get this done,” he told reporters.
Mr. Zelenskyy did not walk away completely empty-handed.
Mr. Biden announced that he approved an additional $200 million military aid package for Ukraine.
The weapons and equipment will be taken from Pentagon stockpiles and include additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, high-speed anti-radiation missiles, anti-armor systems, artillery rounds, missile demolition munitions and 4 million rounds of small-arms ammunition.
It comes through presidential drawdown authority, letting Mr. Biden pull weapons from U.S. stockpiles and send them to other nations at war. State Department officials said it was one of the last security assistance packages the U.S. could provide to Ukraine because it comes under previously directed drawdowns.
Including the latest package, the U.S. has roughly $4.4 billion worth of weapons in its stockpile that Mr. Biden can tap for Ukraine. Last week, he approved a separate drawdown worth about $175 million.